The Aenitshield
Measuring almost three feet in length and two feet in width, this reflective metal shield gleams an electric blue-gray on its face, and a rich, matte reddish-brown on its back. It is shaped vaguely like a long, extended heart with an inverted trapezoid on its top, the points of the trapezoid reaching the same width as the widest part of the heart. It is slightly convex, guiding blows off of the sides of the shield like water off the back of a spoon. The back is constructed with very little in the way of framework, consisting simply of a hearty, leather-clad grip and two other leather bands, designed to attach the shield to the user's forearm. The face is bossed in gold with a circle of three hammers, butts touching in the center, the symbol of artisan Aenit Hammer. Around 35 BTA, there is said to have lived an eccentric armorer by the name of Aenit Hammer. Aenit was obsessed with making the best set of armor possible, and wasn't satisfied with the designs that existed in his day, nor with only using one metal in their creation. He mixed and alloyed metals and minerals freely, and the designs for his suits of armor (such as the hammer-helm, designed to be used as an augment to headbutting an opponent if the user was disarmed) often verged on the ludicrous. However, near the end of his career, he finally came up with something that came very close to his need for perfection: the Aenitshield. Made from two different alloys melted on top of each other, it consisted of a bluish alloy that he called hardore, which was virtually impervious to blows and very slick to the touch, and a reddish-brown alloy on the back called stifleshock that seemed to soften the effects of weapon blows on the wielder's hand and forearm. He fashioned it in such a shape as to be able to catch attacker's blades and disarm them, yet maintain maximum usability as a shield. This opened up the ability of using large shields offensively without injury to one's hand or arm, and a new swordfighting style was created with the Aenitshields in mind, called simply 'Aenit'. Over the remainder of his career, he fashioned more than two hundred of these shields, charging exhorbitant fees and getting few complaints. He never gave out the formula for his alloys, and just after the Aegis was completed, he died. As these masterpieces were passed down over the ages, the flaw in Aenit's design became evident: they were extremely succeptable to rust. Those that actively used the shields soon found that in twenty years or so, the rust would overtake them and they would become useless. In the 300's, there was an insurgence of nobles collecting what were left of these shields, mounting them over their mantle or for other uses in their homes, far from any combat use. But even these became rarer and rarer as time went on. The last known Aenitshield was in the possession of Arphas Lomasa in the year 573 before it succumbed to rust. It is unknown how this one managed to escape the rigors of time, but it appears to be in nearly flawless condition. *Status: Retired. The Aenitshield